Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-07-29
TENDENCY OF THE times
Before the World is Conv srted the
Style Of Religious Discourse Will
Have TO be Converted,
We Must Have Living Illustrations
Taken From Every Day Life OF
Vicarious Suffering,
Stout Brakes TO Let Down at the Right
Instant Wanted, as Well as Loco IN olive
Power and Propulsion,
snerlal 10 the Gszette.

Special to the Gazette,
THE HAMrToNs, July 2+-The Rev.
7. Dewitt Talmage's subject this morn
ing was: preaching, Teaching and
EIhortation," and his text Romans,
XII, and 8 verses: cor ministry, let Us
wait on our ministering; or ne that
tescheth, on teaching: or he that exort-
eth, on exhortion."
Before the world is converted the
style OF religious discourse will have tO
0e converted. You might as well 90
into the modern Sedan or Gettysburg
with bows and arrows instead OF rifles
and bGmshells and parks Of artillery, as
TO expect 10 conquer this world fo- God
~ the CID stlVes of eXb0rtatlOn and SER
mOLOlOgy. Jonathan Edwards preached
the sermons most adapted 70 the age in
which he lived but il those sermons
were preached now they would divide an
audience into two classes, those sound
asleep gndtbOse wanting to 20 home.
But there is q religious discourse Of the
futuTe-Wlo viii preach il / have no
idea, in Wha- part of the earth it will be
horn have no idea, in which den0mins-
tons OF Christians it will be delivered ]
cannot guess. That discourse OF eEhOr-
tsti0n may be born in the country meet
inglhOGse on the banks Of the st. Lawrence
or the Oregon, or the Ohio, or the
Tomblgbee or the Alabama. The person
who shall deliver it msy this moment be
in cradle under the shadow of the
Sierra Nevadas, or in q New England
farmhouse, or amid the rice fields OF
southern saVannAs Or this moment
ltg
oUr theological seminaries, in the Junior
or middle or senior class, shaping that
weapon OF power. Or there may be com
Ing some new baptism OF the Holy Gaost
on the churches, so that some of us who
now stand in the WatCh-tOweTs of Zion,
waking TO e realization Of our present in
efficiency, m.y preach it ourselves. That
coming discourse may not be fifty years
of. And let Us pray God that its arrival
may be fastened while l announce tOyou
what ] think will be the chief chaTacteris-
ttcs Of tlStI-scOurae or eXhOrtatiOn when
il does arrive; end I want to make the
remarks OF the morning appropriate and
suggestive 10 al classes of Christian
workers
First Of all, remark that that future
religious discourse will he full Of O living
Christ, in COntTadisunctiOu to didaCtic
techniCalitles. a discourse NAV be full
OF Christ though hardly mentioning His
name, aad sermon may be empty Cf
Christ while every sentence is repettiOus
u his titles. The word wants
a LIVING CHRIST,
moi Christ standing az the head OF 9 for !
nal system OF theology, but a Christ who .
means pardon, and sympathy, and condo /
leHCe, and brotherhood, ana life, and
heaven. a poor mans Christ rich I.
mans Christ. An overwOrked mans /.
Christ. An invalid's Christ. farmers /
Christ. a merchants Christ An arti- /
sans Christ. An every mans Christ.
A symmetrical and tiIe wOrded system
OF theology is well enough for theolOgi- .
cal classes, but il has no more business
in the pulpit than have the technical
phrases of an anatOmlSt or q psychOlO-
gist or 8 physician in the sick room of
patient. The world wants help, immedi-
ste and wOrld-ppifting, aud it will come
through 8 discourse in which Christ shall
wslk right down into the immortal soul
and take everlasting possession of it, Till
jug it as full of light as is this MONDAY
ornament.
That sermon of eXhOrtatiOn Cf the fu-
ture viii not deal with men in the thread
bare illustrations OF Jesus Christ To
that coming address there viii be in
stances of vicsriOus suffering taken right
cut Of everyday lie, for there is not
day somebody Is not diving for others. As
the physician saving this diphtheritiC pa
tieut by sacrificing his own life; Is the
ship captain going down with his vessel,
while he is getting his passengers into
the liie-bOat; as the fireman c0nsuriu. in
the burning building while be is taking 8
child out Of 3 fourth story window; as in
sumner the strong swimmer st East
Hampton, or Long Branch, or Cape May,
or Lake George, himself persisted trying
to rescue the drowning; IS the newspaper
COY one summer, supporting his mother
for some yesrS, his invalid mother,
when offered by gentleman 30
cents to get some espeCiSl paper, and he
got il, and rushed up in his anxiety TO
deliver il, aud was crushed under the
wheels of the train, and lay on the grass
with only strength enough to say: son,
wnst Will become Of my poor, sick mother
low3"
NICARIOTS 81 IT ERTNG.
The world is full Of il. An engineer
said to me on locomotive in Dakota
ave men seem 10 be coming to better
appreciation than we used TO. Did you
,
gineer. who, to save his passengers, stuck
10 his place, and when he was found dead
Ia his locomotive, which WIS upside
down, he was found still smiling, his
hsnd on the air-brsbe?" And as the en-
gjueer said it TO me be put his hand on
me air-bCake 10 illustrate his meaning,
and looked at him and thought: ''You ,
would BE lust SIS much OF q nero in the :
same crisis"
On. in that religious discourse of the r
future there viii be living Illustrations
taken out from everyday life Of vicarious :
suffering that viii bring to :
mind the ghsstlier sacrifice OF Hum, who :
IN the high places OF the field, on the ;
cross, fought our battles, and wept our .
grletSs 2ud endured our struggle, and :
died our death !.
German sculptor made an image of =
Christ and be asked his little child, two :
years old, who it was, and she said: !
That must be some very great man" =
me sculptor was displeased with the 8.
CRITICISM so he got another block of mar =
Die and ehiseIIed away on it two or three Il
years, and then be brought in his little :.
child, four or i've years old, snd he said =
to her: "Who do you think that is?" =
She ssid THAT must be the One who =
took little children in Bis arms snd :"
blessed them.n Then the sculptor was